Let’s Clear Up a Few Things
While most of us who are in agriculture will get a good laugh out of some of these, I do know that there are people who are pretty removed from the farm and still don’t know where their food comes from. There has been enough awareness over the last few years that most people know their food comes from a farm, and not the grocery store. But based on some of the things we hear, I still don’t think they always understand what happens on the farm. Where I taught elementary school for years, many of the kids had never seen a farm animal. I would take photos of our animals in to them, and during one lambing season I remember the kids being so stumped about what kind of an animal they were seeing. So as funny as some of these questions seem, I do think that they are important to answer, and it is so important that everyone understands how their food is grown, how the animals are raised, how animals grow and interact, and how farms work. I appreciate the questions, and I love to educate. (And I thought my teaching days were over!) These are all from questions we have received either in person or online. I am always so thankful when somebody is willing to speak up and ask questions. I know that when I am talking to somebody in an industry that I don’t understand, I love to ask questions and try to understand. I hope that everyone will ask questions of their local farmers.
Only mama cows give milk - and only after they have a calf. Milk cows do not just automatically give milk. And the “boys” (steers and bulls) do not give milk. It works the same way it works with humans. They make milk after they have a baby.
Hay and straw are not the same thing. Animals typically eat hay, and straw is typically used for bedding.
Blue eggs are not moldy, and all colors of eggs taste the same.
No, We don’t get bored “out here”....we aren’t in the middle of nowhere and there is plenty to keep us busy. In fact, we will never get caught up..and we are certainly not ever bored.
You don’t need a rooster to get eggs. You need a rooster to get fertilized eggs (to hatch baby chicks). And yes, you can eat fertilized eggs - they are no different from unfertilized eggs if they have not been incubated.
Brown cows do not produce chocolate milk. If we do anything this year, I think we should spread the word once and for all that brown cows do not produce chocolate milk. Honestly, I think this myth has been perpetuated for so long because people just so badly want it to be true. I mean, can you imagine basically having your own chocolate fountain out in the barn??
Sheep (ewes and lambs) are not dangerous, and they are not going to hurt you. I don’t know if I have ever had a visitor not look at me with terror on their face and ask “will she bite?” Not only are sheep about 1000 times more afraid of you, but they do not have teeth on their upper jaw, and there is just nothing dangerous about sheep. They do not bite people.
Yes, you should stay away from the bull and ram pens.
It does not hurt sheep to shear them. It is similar to giving yourself a haircut, or shaving the hair on your legs or arms. They do not get hurt. We set them on their rear ends in an upright position. It is cruel to NOT shear them though. Sheep who have not been shorn will have a very heavy and thick wool coat in the middle of the summer. They pant, they have a hard time breathing, and they can die from heat exhaustion. They also can have problems from maggots getting down into the wool and from fly strike.
You have to train a horse to be ridden..they are not born knowing what to do.
Yes, cut flowers have to be watered like any other flowers - we set up water lines to water the soil at the base of the plants. Typically once a day for 45 minutes on a slow drip but that can vary based on temperatures and rainfall. I have a post planned that shows a lot of the details of our cut flower operation.
Both male and female sheep (and cattle) can have horns.
And the answer to my favorite question yet...yes, we do still have to feed the animals on Christmas. But thankfully Santa does it for us.
